After
the first 11 interviews with my brother Police Officer and Detective
Howard Wooldridge of Lansing, Michigan (retired) concerning the “War
on Drugs”, more and more Americans understand the underpinnings
of how the U.S. government protracts a national taxpayer fraud. How
big a fraud? Taxpayers forked over $1 trillion in 38 years paying for
the impotent “War on Drugs.” Results? America suffers more
drugs, major drug networks, cheaper drugs and more potent drugs!

“The
civil government in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico has collapsed. In El Paso's
sister city of 1.5 million—murders, mutilation, torture, kidnappings
and extortions are committed with impunity. Beyond the cost in human
lives and safety, it also threatens to imperil the economic renaissance
in this region and the over $2 billion spent by Mexican nationals in
our local economy. And there is the very real national security threat,
that this brutality and lawlessness could extend throughout Mexico and
lead to a flood of refugees who would overwhelm our border, our city
and our country and make today's undocumented immigration problem seem
insignificant by comparison.” Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey

“These
are not the random thoughts of some blogger,” said El Paso city
councilman Beto O’Rourke.

“Citizens
in El Paso hear the gunfire from the across the Rio Grande,” said
Officer Howard Wooldridge. “Mr. O'Rourke has called for a national
discussion on legalizing drugs in order to make the Mexican Cartels
disappear. He knows what www.leap.cc
knows and every student of history; namely absent prohibition, the Mexican
Drug Cartels will quickly wither and die, same as the Al Capone type
organizations died 75 years ago. Ciudad Juarez, Tijuana and all other
cities and states in Mexico could return to normal.

“As
Councilman O'Rourke wrote those words, he proved to be a man of action
also. He drafted a resolution asking for a national, open discussion
on the legalization of drugs as a method to destroy the Mexican Cartels.
The El Paso City Council agreed with him and passed it 8-0. However,
the mayor vetoed at the last minute. The stage was set for a brouhaha
which eventually rumbled through the corridors of the United States
Congress. El Paso Congressman Reyes wrote the council and urged them
to sustain the mayor's veto. Otherwise, he wrote the city's portion
of the upcoming stimulus package could be reduced. The council vote
rumbled through power brokers in Austin enough to cause the five El
Paso area legislators to write a letter to the council which also threatened
the loss of funds. As our brave soldiers fight and die for our freedoms
in Iraq and Afghanistan, the freedom of speech was destroyed as the
council caved in and voted only 4-4 for override. Thus we see the power
of the money interests in DC and Austin who profit from the War on Drugs.
Can you spell Private Prisons Inc. who love mandatory minimums?

“The
six northern Mexican states bordering the US are in a state of semi
or near complete collapse. The local police are paralyzed with fear
to handle routine police matters like assault, rape, theft, robbery.
As the drug gangs and the Zetas battle each other and the Federales,
commerce suffers. American businesses now often require money upfront
to sell something, rather than extending even short term credit. Experts
are professing the real possibility of true economic & drug war
refugees which would require US taxpayers to help them.

“Two
years ago Mexican President Calderon decided to tackle the ‘narcotraficantes’
of the Mexican Drug Cartels. Today the heads of police officers and
federal soldiers roll down the streets of cities all over central and
northern Mexico. Since Calderon started this effort in 2007, some 8,000
Mexicans have been murdered. The Cartels put up one billboard that taunts
and threatens the police and another offering them a lucrative job,
if they join the Cartels. This is the reality of law enforcement in
Mexico: plato o ploma - silver or lead. The average American cannot
imagine what it would be like to live in such an environment: no rule
of law, no police protection, no sense of security or hope that it will
end, profound despair. And for what?

“Our
country has been having gunfights and dead bodies by the thousands since
the mid '80s. Our drug dealers shoot and kill each other as needed to
get rid of the competition. The Department of Justice recently announced
that the Mexican drug gangs in America are the greatest new threat to
our society. Tens of thousands of American citizens have been killed
but the press barely mentions that it is the drug trade which causes
the violence.” [See the DVD "Border"]

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Abraham
Lincoln said it best, "Prohibition will work great injury to the
cause of temperance. It is a species of intemperance within itself,
for it goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control
a man's appetite by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that
are not crimes. A Prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles
upon which our government was founded."

Officer
Wooldridge continued, “True conservatives in this country - also
known as Libertarians - have long supported a drug policy based on six
principles. One - Individual Liberty. Two - Personal Responsibility.
Three - Property Rights. Four - Limited Government. Five - Cost Effective
Government and Six - States' Rights.

“Unfortunately,
tens of millions of people who call themselves conservatives nonetheless
support the nanny-state liberal policy of drug war/drug prohibition.
They want the police to break down the doors of those citizens who choose
marijuana instead of whiskey, cocaine instead of Prozac or heroin instead
of Valium. These 'conservatives' are either unwilling or unable to realize
they are liberals on drug policy, as they support prohibition as a drug
control strategy.

“Modern
prohibition costs the US economy about $200 billion in lost taxes, lost
productivity and law enforcement costs. Despite the need to borrow some
$3 billion per DAY from China, the politicians here in DC insist on
giving Mexico $400 million a year to 'win' the battle with the Drug
Cartels.

“$400
million is pocket change to the Cartels. That is why they have won the
struggle with the Federales. Is anyone else shaking their head about
this waste of money? Does no one in our federal government care about
the suffering of the Mexican people?

“Tell
your member of Congress to support hearings on whether the war on drugs
is an effective drug control strategy. Urge your local city or county
government to pass a resolution, asking for a national conversation
on drug prohibition. Ask yourself what have been the benefits, the positive
outcomes for our country during the 38 year Drug War? Join
LEAP on line without cost and add your voice.

The
mission of LEAP is Today, my brother Howard Wooldridge heads up a task
force in Washington, DC to educate and enlighten congressmen at the
highest levels. He works for a better future for all Americans. He can
be reached at: Education Specialist, Law
Enforcement Against Prohibition, Washington, DC. He speaks at colleges,
political clubs, Rotary, Kiwanis and Lions Clubs across America. LEAP
speakers in 36 states address this issue to citizens around the country
to bring an end to the Drug War. Check out the web site and join. Book
a speaker in your state! Wooldridge
also presents at political conferences in Washington. To reduce the
multitude of unintended harmful consequences resulting from fighting
the war on drugs and to lessen the incidence of death, disease, crime,
and addiction by ultimately ending drug prohibition.

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“Envision
a world where crime is cut in half, terrorists don’t make money
selling drugs and kids are not employed in the drug trade,” Wooldridge
said. “Envision a world where the police focus on DUI, child predators
and terrorists. Imagine a world where if you have a drug problem, you
see a doctor not a judge. All are possible, when we find the courage
to end our Prohibition.”

Listen
to Frosty Wooldridge on Tuesdays and Thursdays as he interviews
top national leaders on his radio show “Connecting the Dots” at republicbroadcasting.org
at 6:00 PM Mountain Time. Adjust tuning in to your time zone.

Frosty
Wooldridge possesses a unique view of the world, cultures and families
in that he has bicycled around the globe 100,000 miles, on six continents
and six times across the United States in the past 30 years. His published
books include: "HANDBOOK FOR TOURING BICYCLISTS" ; “STRIKE THREE! TAKE
YOUR BASE”; “IMMIGRATION’S UNARMED INVASION: DEADLY CONSEQUENCES”; “MOTORCYCLE
ADVENTURE TO ALASKA: INTO THE WIND—A TEEN NOVEL”; “BICYCLING AROUND THE
WORLD: TIRE TRACKS FOR YOUR IMAGINATION”; “AN EXTREME ENCOUNTER: ANTARCTIA.”
His next book: “TILTING THE STATUE OF LIBERTY INTO A SWAMP.” He lives
in Denver, Colorado.

“Our
country has been having gunfights and dead bodies by the thousands since
the mid '80s. Our drug dealers shoot and kill each other as needed to
get rid of the competition. The Department of Justice recently announced
that the Mexican drug gangs in America are the greatest new threat to
our society...